Other Recommended DB2 Books

Understanding DB2: Learning Visually with Examples by Raul Chong and Clara Liu  - A step by step instruction manual to learning DB2 UDB for Linuix, Unix, and Windows.

DB2 UDB v8 Handbook for Windows and UNIX/Linux by Phil Gunning - a nice reference for DBAs who are deploying and managing DB2 Universal Database V8. Topics include database design for optimal performance, availability, and recoverability; day-to-day administration and backup; comparing, selecting, and using appropriate DB2 programming techniques; deploying networked and Internet-centered database applications; migrating to DB2 UDB from other databases or earlier versions of DB2; and more.

DB2 High Performance Design and Tuning by Susan Lawson and Richard Yevich - a nice companion book to my DB2 Developer's Guide that focuses almost exclusively on the performance issues surrounding DB2 for OS/390.

Recommended SQL Books

SQL Performance Tuning by Peter Gulutzan and Trudy Pelzer - this book provides a comprehensive overview of SQL performance tuning giving guidance and advice on how to properly code and tune SQL for the major DBMS products (including Oracle, DB2, Sybase, Microsoft SQL Server, Informix, Ingres, MySQL, and InterBase). Very useful and well written.

SQL Tuning by Dan Tow - another useful book covering the topic of tuning SQL. If you can only afford one, get the one by Gulutzan and Pelzer, but this is a fine addition to the SQL literature.

SQL for Smarties by Joe Celko - intended for SQL programmers with some experience, this book offers a clear and useful technical discussion of SQL along with practical explanations. If you are looking for SQL queries that solve your most vexing problems, the answer is most likely in this great book. Just recently completely updated & revised.

SQL Hacks by Andrew Cumming & Gordon Russell - takes a different approach than most SQL books by offering 100 concise "hacks" that solve common problems using SQL code.

SQL in a Nutshell, 2nd ed by Kevin Kline - a nice SQL syntax reference for anyone who uses more than one of the popular SQL database management systems.

The Art of SQL by Stephane Faroult - a guide to SQL written using the approach of "The Art of War" by Sun-Tzu.

Recommended Oracle Books

OCP Instructors Guide for Oracle DBA Certification by Chris Foot - this book is written by one of the top Oracle instructors in the world and it shows. Chris' experience teaching shines through as he clearly explains the topics that are most troubling to Oracle students. This interesting and readable book is very highly recommended.

Oracle Expert: One on One by Thomas Kyte - this book contain a wealth of knowledge on developing Oracle applications, as well as great advice on designing and administering Oracle databases. There are sections on general design and implementation practices, application architecture, locking and concurrency, transactions and rollbacks, importing and exporting, and lots more of interest to developers.

Oracle Insights: Tales of the Oak Table - a completely unique book. It is both entertaining and educational, a tough trick to pull off. Written by a cadre of eleven Oracle experts who have dubbed themselves The Oak Table Network, Oracle Insights offers up just what its title implies. One chapter of the book is devoted to a history of Oracle Corp., another covers the dreaded disease of "compulsive tuning disorder," and there is even a full frontal attack on RAID free, four, and five. Ya just gotta read it.

Oracle Database 10g: The Complete Reference by Kevin Loney - the latest edition of this popular guide introduces the fundamental commands and techniques used in Oracle 9i database systems, and how to develop applications using Oracle and SQL. Other topics covered include PL/SQL structures, object-oriented and Java features in the Oracle database, the data dictionary, database optimizers, and the application server.

Learning Oracle PL/SQL by Bill Pribyl and Steven Feuerstein - clearly teaches PL/SQL in a variety of ways such that it is useful to a variety of audiences including beginning programmers, new Oracle database administrators, and developers familiar with other databases who now need to learn Oracle. 

Oracle Database 10g New Features: Oracle10g Reference for Advanced Tuning and Administration by Mike Ault, Madhu Tumma, Daniel Liu, Don Burleson - a very nicely done treatise on the new features of Oracle 10g that every DBA will want to know

Recommended SQL Server Books

Pro SQL Server 2005 by Thomas Rizzo - a concise reference to the essential features of Microsoft's latest and greatest release, SQL Server 2005. In just about 650 pages this book covers the pertinent topics relevant to both DBAs and developers including coverage of Transact-SQL, CLR, SQL Server Integration Services, XML, and security enhancements.

Inside Microsoft SQL Server 2000 by Kalen Delaney - a good, technical introduction to SQL Server 2000 covering SQL Server 2000 internals, especially data structures and the behavior of queries, table design, indexing, and Transact-SQL programming (including the use of cursors).

The Guru's Guide to SQL Server Stored Procedures, XML, and HTML by Ken Henderson - for advanced SQL Server programmers, this book explores the nuances and quirks in SQL Server's stored procedure programming language, Transact-SQL.

MySQL Book Recommendations

MySQL Tutorial by Luke Welling and Laura Thomson - a nice, inexpensive, task-oriented introduction to the capabilities, features, and functionality of the most popular open source DBMS.

MySQL Clustering by Alex Davies and Harrison Fisk - when you need to move beyond the basics this book offers a comprehensive guide to implementing and administering MySQL's clustering technology.

Other Database Book Recommendations

An Introduction to Database Systems, 8th Ed by C.J. Date - a classic in the field of IT and database management. Every database professional should own a copy of this book. It clearly illustrates the theory behind relational databases, as well as their practicality. 

Database In Depth by C.J. Date - this new book represents Date's latest thinking on the fundamental principles of relational database systems. The book is concise, and to the point. If Date’s other voluminous books intimidate you, this book’s 208 pages should be easier to handle.

Practical Issues in Database Management by Fabian Pascal - provides an up-to-date understanding of the practical aspects of crucial, yet little-understood core database issues. The author identifies fundamental concepts, principles, and techniques and assesses the treatment of those issues in SQL. This book is thought-provoking, enlightening, and entertaining.

The Data Warehouse Toolkit by Ralph Kimball - this quintessential guide to dimensional data warehouse modeling and development utilizes case studies from a variety of business applications

The Database Hacker's Handbook by Litchfield, Anley, Heasman and Grindlay - four of the world's top security experts teach you to break into & defend the seven most popular database servers. You'll learn how to identify vulnerabilities, how attacks are carried out, & how to stop the carnage. The bad guys already know all this. You should, too.

Implementing Database Security and Auditing by Ron Ben-Natan - this book is a guide to implementing security and auditing for heterogeneous database environments. It discusses database vulnerabilities and how to combat them. The section on regulatory compliance is particularly helpful in this day-and-age of Sarbanes-Oxley, etc.

Data Modeling and Database Design Book Recommendations

Beginning Relational Data Modeling, 2nd edition by Sharon Allen and Evan Terry - a nice, concise introduction to data modeling; this book will lead you step by step through the process of developing an effective logical data model for your relational database model. No previous data modeling experience is required (or assumed).

Data Modeling Essentials by Graeme Simsion & Graham Witt  - a nice, well-written guide to data modeling that can serve as the foundation for learning data modeling concepts, or as a comprehensive reference for more experienced data modelers.

Handbook of Relational Database Design by Candace Fleming and Barbara von Halle - this book offers a practical and proven approach to designing relational databases. If you are a DBA or need to design relational databases as part of your job, this book belongs on your desk. Somewhat dated, but still quite useful. 

Data Model Patterns by David Hay - this book analyzes data structures common to many businesses. It shows the patterns inherent in many data models so you do not have to start over from scratch. Includes B&W diagrams, and a set of ready-to-use models for typical applications in many industries.

Mainframe Book Recommendations

Murach's OS/390 and z/OS JCL by Menendez and Lowe- a great JCL reference book for IBM mainframe programmers and DBAs

CICS Desk Reference by Menendez and Lowe - every CICS technician, programmer, and DBA who interacts with CICS needs this book on their desk; it provides a great one-stop place to lookup all things CICS.

Exploring IBM eServer zSeries and S/390 Servers by Hoskins and Frank - a very nice introduction to, and history of, the venerable IBM mainframe computer  

An Introduction to IMS by Metlz, et al - offers a good, technical overview of IBM's stalwart hierarchical DBMS

Java for S/390 and AS/400 COBOL Programmers by Coulthard and Farr - this book offers a great way for us dinosaurs to learn how to code Java

Murach's Structured COBOL by Murach, Prince and Menendez - Mike Murach and his team offer a fantastic COBOL book that is great for both learning COBOL and as a reference for more seasoned veterans

VSAM Access Method Services by James Martin - the classic reference book for mainframers who need to use, program against, or manage VSAM files (either natively, or in conjunction with DB2 or IMS)